Did you guess? She was a symbol of women’s contributions to the war effort during World War Two. While many were on active duty overseas, there were others supporting them in factories across the country. Florence was one of those women. She left Pennsylvania and her eight siblings to come to New Jersey for work. She commuted to New York City for a short time then took a job at Curtis Wright as a solderer on plane parts, supporting the war efforts.

Her sister, Mary, left Pennsylvania for New York City to work as a governess. Mary married Walter Warin, moved to Pennsylvania, where Walter worked for Bethlehem Steel during the war. Afterwards, they returned to New Jersey. A few years following Walter’s death in 1997, Mary bought a house in Forked River to be near her family. She remained in her home until her passing in 2010, at the age of 94. While living in Forked River, she delighted in having her great grandson come to her home each morning before school to wait for the bus and after school there was always the glass of milk and cookies. This was a very special time for both of them.

Florence, settled in Garfield, where she made friends who would become a permanent part of her life. She married Gary Annibal, had three children and together she and Gary started two businesses. They purchased their home in 1961 where Florence remained until June 2018, passing at 95 years of age. After her husband died in 2011, she chose to remain in her home where she was aided primarily by family members who kept her engaged and active.

Reading her story is a reminder, that many of us know only limited histories about our family members and the roles they played in contributing to our history, our communities and our country. Her story became one of the memorials about staying active, healthy and connected to family and friends. Florence symbolizes the aging-in-place goals of Y-Move.

What stands out about Florence may be true of family members, friends or neighbors. From her early years, Florence exercised, jumping rope in her basement while doing laundry, doing leg lifts in bed and arm exercises with some light weight hand bells. She was on a bowling team, maintained her garden and her home. She loved cruises and traveled throughout the United States with family members.

Her daughters spoke of her skills with a pogo stick and with the bouncing paddle ball. Given a harmonica and an instruction book, she learned the basics well enough to entertain some of the grandchildren. She exercised her brain by doing word searches and reading the newspaper daily. She served as a county committee woman, loved Lawrence Welk, pasta, ice cream, cake, her family, her church and having her hair done every week. She cared about her appearance and watched her weight. Florence lived an active life, never on a regime of medication, and never sedentary.

What are you doing for yourself or that senior you know who may need your help and encouragement? What makes Florence special to appear in this column? Nothing in particular but everything in general. Florence is in many of our neighborhoods and in our families. This story is intended to encourage you to connect with a senior family member, friend or neighbor. Inquire about their life stories. Show them that you are interested in who they are and that you will be there for them as they age in place. Help can come when needed through families, organizations, churches or good neighbors. Need some additional resources? Call us at Y-Move. That’s why we’re here and that is what we do.